Sharing Goodness

We live in a world shaped by our actions. Sometimes it doesn’t seem that way. There are a lot of things happening in the world that we would rather not happen, but they’re happening anyhow. That’s because the way our actions shape our experience is very complex. We’ve got the results of past actions, some of which may go back many, many lifetimes, plus our actions right now.

As the Buddha said, the important issue is: Are you doing things right now that are going to make you suffer? You can’t go back and change your past actions, but you can monitor your present actions to make sure they’re skillful. Do your best—if you notice that you’re being careless or heedless or just sloppy in any way—to change what you’re doing.

This is why we meditate, because our actions come out of our mind, and the mind needs to be trained. So we train it right here, right now. When we do good like this, then you think about other people. And one way of having goodwill for others is to wish that they would share in the merit that you’ve made.

Here in the West, we don’t like the word merit, puñña. So think of it as goodness. You’re doing something good, and you know there are going to be good results coming from it, some of which come right now; others will come down the line. And you’d like other people to have a share in that.

That’s because the goodness of merit is not tied up just for you. There are no clear boundaries around it. After all, what are you doing that’s meritorious? You’re being generous. You’re being virtuous. You’re meditating. These are actions that benefit you and other people at the same time.

So when you think of someone that you’d like to share it with, all you have to do is just make that wish: “May they rejoice in the merit I’ve made. If they don’t know about it, may someone alert them.” And that’s it.

It’s not the same as when you’re spreading thoughts of goodwill. When you’re spreading thoughts of goodwill, you want to act on those thoughts. But with spreading merit, you dedicate it, and it’s up to them—the other people—if they want to rejoice or not. That’s their responsibility. But you gain even more merit as you think in these ways. You want to make sure that the results of your good actions get spread around.

So we do good as best we can, and then we try to make it even better. This is why the Buddha said you have to commit yourself to the practice and then reflect on it. Of course, you don’t stop with the reflection. You see you’ve done anything wrong, then you commit yourself again in a new way. Figure out what you did wrong; correct it. That’s how the Dhamma grows. That’s how you grow in the Dhamma.

But remember, this is a goodness that spreads around. That’s the nature of goodness. The happiness that comes from material gain, status, praise, sensual pleasures: That’s something you can’t share very far. But the goodness that comes from being generous, being virtuous, meditating—there’s no limit to that.

So. Take joy in the goodness that you’re able to do and then share it with others. May they rejoice as well. This is how the world becomes a better place.